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How Can Pinterest Help your Retail Store

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When brands like JCPenny, The Gap, Honda, McDonalds, and Banana Republic make it to Pinterest, you know that Pinterest means business. And it does, although Pinterest was not intended to be a business venture, but like other social networking sites, it has found a niche. It is rapidly growing and provides a visual delight to its visitors, and now features a platform for businesses and retail stores to display their products.

Pinterest for Retail


Well it’s no secret, Pinterest is pretty. It is a visual delight and provides that ultimate virtual experience of window shopping. Your retail store too can become a part of the ever growing retail community.
According to the 2012 Social and Mobile Commerce Study released by Shop.org, Pinterest users follow an average of 9.3 retail companies whereas Facebook users only follow 6.9. This is reason enough why more and more retail brands are making sure that they keep up with the new trends in e-commerce. And you can do the same, here’s how:

1. Product Marketing

You can put pictures of your products which link back to your websites. Pinterest has a high click through rate, so pinning those pictures will lead to visitors, who may find your product appealing enough to visit your website to make a purchase. Even if a visitor does not intend to buy the product but finds it visually appealing, chances are he or she would re pin it, which will market your product free of cost.

2. Know what’s Trending

By following your followers or even your competition you will know what’s trending. Especially in case your product is related to fashion e.g. clothing or accessories, see what’s making the news and pin pictures which relate to it. For instance if a certain celebrity is trending or a certain color or silhouette then pin or re pin pictures of your products that reflect those trends. By following your followers you will also be able to get a better idea about their tastes and preferences. It will provide that much needed feedback and insight into your customers or potential customers tastes.

3. Picture Perfect Sales

Any sale via the web requires serious selling techniques, with Pinterest it’s the visual tactic. And it has been known to work. So even if you do not sell products but services, then pin pictures that relate to it. For instance if you are an event management company then pinning  pictures of your completed projects or pictures that display themes or ideas will attract potential customers.

4. Links

Don’t forget to link your website with Pinterest with a “Find us on Pinterest” link on your website. Also link your website with other social networking sites, especially Facebook and Twitter, this will let your pins then appear on the newsfeed of those sites. This will mean more traffic and will attract customers from other social networking sites too.
Pinterest is only 2 years old and it already has millions of users and a profitable retail presence. So it’s about time that you jump on the bandwagon and make the most of it.
Pantelis Vladimirou is the Co-Foudner of Webarts, which is using Pinterest and other Social Media as part of its Cyprus Digital Marketing strategy for its clients.

Using Social Media for Brand Awareness

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Cost-effective and powerful, social media is changing the way companies network. That’s because many businesses today are finding that connections made on sites like Facebook, Twitter and blogs are allowing them to better communicate with customers, more effectively draw in new leads and, over all else according to a July 2010 survey, increase customer awareness of their brand.
How does this work? How can you leverage the power of social networks to expand your brand’s influence and reach? Check out these five practical ideas!

  • Know Your Brand. Before you can promote your brand, you need to have a solid understanding of what it is. Ask yourself what distinguishes you company from others, what you offer that no one else does, what makes you valuable. Then, find a way to promote those benefits across all your marketing materials, from your logo to your website to your Twitter profile, in order to communicate a strong sense of your brand.
  • Establish a Solid, Branded Web Presence. Your website is your single most important online branding tool, the place where all your other marketing tools will direct. With a strong Web presence, your company has a resource that means better search rankings for increased traffic, increased leads and higher conversion rates.
  • Go Where Your Audience Is. A big part of being able to effectively reach your audience is understanding who they are. Is your audience active on Pinterest? Instagram? Facebook? Go where they are and join their conversations in order to expose them to your brand—and to enhance your scope of influence, offer something that meets their needs, whether tips, answers or links to helpful resources.
  • Connect with Online Influencers. Identify the people in your industry who are most influential and work to build relationships with them. Follow them on Twitter, respond to their posts on blogs and Facebook, email them when you have something valuable to say. By connecting with these influencers, you help expand your company’s reach.
  • Keep at It. A strong social media presence isn’t built overnight—in order to develop a loyal following, you have to earn it. Be consistent about posting on your social profiles so that users come to trust and respect your contributions; if you don’t, you run the risk of harming your reputation rather than helping it. If you can’t keep up with a profile, it’s better not to start it.

What do you think—could social media be a game changer for your brand? Take advantage of these tips to watch your presence expand!
Author:
Shanna Mallon is a writer for Straight North, a leader among Chicago marketing firms. She writes for clients in various B2B industries, from merchant processing solutions to Kevlar welding gloves. Check out the Straight North blog! @straightnorth
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Why Blogs Matter More than Ever for SEO

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I recently showed a college student a blog post I was working on, and he asked me what percentage of the content I dedicated to keyword phrases. He had taken a course in SEO, and he understood keyword density. So do I. But even as an SEO copywriter, it’s not really something that I take into account when writing content anymore.
Rather than give him a percentage, I explained to him that the number of times a keyword is placed within an article isn’t as important as it used be. Yes, keywords still play a big role, but the quality of the content has become a more critical factor in getting higher search results. That’s where blogs come into play.
The Rise of the Blog
Back in the day (1990s to early 2000s), blogs weren’t as widely accepted as they are now. Saying you had a blog was like telling people that you’re kind of a geek and you really like to talk about yourself. Last May, eMarketer reported that 53.5% of Internet users would read blogs in 2011. That’s 122.6 million blog readers. Today, blogs have become an effective way for people to share their opinions; stay updated on news, trends and topics that interest them; and have ongoing conversations with others who share those opinions and interests. For businesses, blogs have become a necessary tool for reaching customers on a higher level and improving SEO.
The rising value of blog content has not gone unnoticed when it comes to search results – Google wants to put the content that people read in front of them, and right now, that means blogs.
Keep Your Content Fresh and Relevant
Google favors new, fresh content, and in today’s fast-paced market, content can get outdated pretty quickly. Maintaining a continually updated blog on your company website allows you to keep adding new content to your site without having to completely rework product or service pages. In addition, the content must contain valuable information – Google Panda updates now put low-quality content created solely for link building at the bottom of search results.
Guest Blog, Guest Blog, Guest Blog
Writing guest posts on other blogs has a number of benefits, one of which includes SEO value. Guest posts often allow back links to your blog and website within your blogger bio. Good relationships with authoritative bloggers can be incredibly valuable for SEO, especially if the blogs have high page ranks, as Google is impressed by link quality and diversity. Networking also helps establish your own blog as an authority in your niche.
Social Sharing
The better quality the content, the more it’s shared through social media. Google recognizes social sharing, such as tweets, retweets, Facebook likes and Google +1’s. Internet users are much quicker to share a blog post, rather than a website page, through Twitter. With the rise of Pinterest, blogs that post quality images are also being shared more, resulting in increased traffic and higher search rankings.
Do you have a blog? Are you using it to improve your SEO strategy?
Author:

Jacqui MacKenzie is a writer for Straight North, one of the leading Internet marketing companies in Chicago. She writes for a wide range of clients, from providers of GPS for vehicle tracking to broadcasting equipment specialists. Check out the Straight North blog! @ straightnorth

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The Buzz about Pinterest

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Interest in Pinterest has been buzzing around on social networks for a while now. Pinterest now has buttons on many sharing sites that did not have them before last month.  So what exactly is Pinterest?

Pinterest is a tool for organizing and sharing images online. If you find something that inspires you or interest you, you can use your Pinterest account to create a visual bookmark to the link. These images are then known as Pins.  Users can place their Pins on their own boards that they can label with specific themes if desired.

Pinterest’s focus is to provide the means for a connection for everyone on earth through shared interest. Based out of Palo Alto, California, Pinterest is chock-full of notable investors and entrepreneurs.

  • Hank Vigil
  • Kevin Hartz
  • Fritz Lanman
  • Jack Abraham
  • Jeremy Stoppelman
  • Michael Birch
  • Ron Conway
  • Scott Belsky
  • Shana Fisher

Pinterest allows users to ‘repin’ the Pins of others. So what happens when you Pin an interest?

  • When you repin an interest you are allowed to categorize the image onto your own boards.
  • Liking someone’s Pin will add the image to your personal profile’s Like section. The image doesn’t get added to one of your boards.
  • Users can choose to integrate their Twitter and Facebook accounts with Pinterest.

Pinterest is another social networking opportunity for so many who enjoy this helpful new element of internet communication. Users can create their own gift wish list, or simply just share their personal preferences with the world.

Get Started on Pinterest

There are many ways to utilize and enjoy Pinterest.

  • Social Networking – Just like Facebook and Twitter, users can add each other through Pinterest’s system.
  • Profile creation – If you Google yourself, you will likely find the highest links are from your personal social network profiles. Pinterest gives you another chance to create one.
  • Create a wish list for your next birthday or anniversary. Share it with those you need to drop a hint to.
  • On that same note, your friends who are on Pinterest are already providing you with a potential gift wish list. No more sneaking around asking people close to them what they may enjoy as a gift.
  • Get inspired! Use Pinterest for inspiration for any number of things, including work!

Create your own vision boards on your favorite topics and trends with Pinterest.

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